“Meet the New Boss” was a surprisingly enjoyable episode of Tyrant. Barry’s decision to remove Jamal from office has given this show a serious shot of life, which it sorely needed after Sheik Rashid’s death. But like all episodes of Tyrant, this one raised more questions than it answered. Stupid, inane questions.
First of all, I have to make a little retraction: Molly sister isn’t named Angela, she’s named Jenna. Evidently I heard “Aunt Jenna” as “Angela.” But you know what? It doesn’t make a difference, because Jenna has no purpose on this show. Why is she here? She’s in maybe two scenes, and adds nothing except a name to the credits. Is the actress who plays Jenna (Wrenn Schmidt) friends with the producer? She’s not a bad actress, having been in shows like Boardwalk Empire and The Americans, but that doesn’t excuse the fact that Jenna has no earthly reason to be on this show. And listen, I would LOVE it if I had to eat my words on this. If Jenna turns out to be some CIA plant or something like that, I’d be happy to be proven wrong. But I don’t see it happening, because more often than not Tyrant has no clue what it’s doing.
For instance: the show really wants us to care about the Nusrat/Ahmed subplot, which I don’t. Ahmed is a dick, so forgive me if I have trouble mustering up any sympathy for him.
Anyway, the actual coup subplot is pretty interesting. Barry goes around rounding up support from Yousaf, a Colonel who wants to supplant Tariq, and John Tucker, who brings along a friend from the State Department, a steely woman named Mia Ecksley. We barely see Mia, but I want more. Honestly I’d watch a whole show about her and John Tucker doing shady behind the scenes shit.
Alas, I don’t get to watch that show. I get to watch a show where taking a vacation is seen as a personal insult. Barry wants his family to go back to California, just for a week, to protect them when the coup happens. And guys, this is seriously the biggest fucking deal ever. Molly flips out, along with Sammy, and Jenna just demands money to go shopping. No, wait, she says “Permission to go shopping?” What the fuck is even happening here? It’s one week, guys. They didn’t make anything close to this fuss when they were transplanted from Pasadena to the Middle East. Then later in the show, when Molly learns about the coup, she gets mad at Barry for making them stay in Abbudin! Does she remember that just a few episodes ago she was reading him the goddamn riot act because he wanted her and the kids to go home? Wait, is Barry married to twins, both named Molly, with wildly disparate dispositions? Because that’s the only explanation I can think of for this bipolar bullshit.
Even Jamal was boring, and as problematic a character as he is, at the very least he’s usually interesting. First he dedicates a soccer field for some poor kids – and he says “soccer.” Wouldn’t someone in the Middle East say “football,” like every other country on the planet except America? He also gives a terrible apology to Nusrat, saying his actions were “misconstrued.” Uh, no, it’s definitely sexual violence.
As you can see, Tyrant is a frustrating fucking show, and the main character’s family is the most aggravating part of it. The show is capable of producing a decent episode, or at least close to decent, but until Barry’s family gets the Poochie treatment,Tyrant will continue to have problems.
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